15 shop owners who lost their businesses are now part of the pickup truck market project

25 restaurants, bars and food-related shops have received equipment and tools to resume their businesses

over 21,000 community newsletters/newspapers have been distributed to survivors to help them stay connected with their community

nearly 400 students in Otsuchi, Miyako and Kirikiri were provided with new sports uniforms and equipment, learning materials, and musical instruments

On March 11, 2011, an earthquake measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale struck near the eastern coast of Japan. It was the fourth-largest earthquake ever recorded globally and created an enormous tsunami that caused massive destruction along 190 kilometers of the coastline. Nearly 16,000 people were killed and over 3,400 remain missing.

This disaster deeply affected the country and the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Following the emergency, CARE Japan immediately organized a convoy to the city of Kamaishi in Iwate prefecture, one of the worst-hit areas, and handed out relief items. Within one week of the disaster, CARE Japan was implementing a feeding program for 600 evacuees.

CARE’s humanitarian response focused on providing emergency relief supplies such as mattresses, blankets and food; providing support to businesses to revitalize their economic opportunities; providing school uniforms, learning materials, musical instruments and sporting equipment so that students could go back to school; and offering psychosocial support to help heal the emotional scars left behind by this devastating disaster.